My Only Wish This Year
by shehasnotime
Summary: In an effort to make Haley's holiday a little brighter, Brooke invites Lucas and Nathan over for Christmas. BL NH


**This is a little Christmas Exchange fic I wrote for Cari. I hope you like it! Just so you guys know, there's no Peyton in this and that's what she wanted so that's what she gets ;) **

**Requirements:  
Pairing: Brooke/Lucas, Nathan/Haley  
Season: 3  
Rating: Anything.  
Phrases to be included:  
"There's a hole in my stocking!"  
"Guys, we have a little problem .." **

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"A little more to the left," Brooke instructed, ignoring the dirty look Haley shot her. Brooke rolled her eyes and watched the tiny girl drag the big Christmas tree to the left. "Actually, I liked it where it was in the first place."

"That's it!" Haley yelled in frustration, leaving the Christmas tree in its current place before collapsing on the couch. "Why don't you get off your ass and do it?"

"Because," Brooke began, flashing her red and green painted nails. "I'm waiting for my nails to dry and besides, you're the one who insisted on having such a big Christmas tree." Haley let out a small gasp and glared straight at her roommate.

"Okay, first of all, you're the one who brought this home, not me!" Haley gestured to the tree before wrinkling her nose at the sight of Brooke's nails. "And secondly, those look really ugly," she said, trying to stifle her laugh when Brooke's eyes widened.

"Listen, Tutor Grinch!" Brooke started, watching as Haley began to sulk on the couch a few feet away from her. "I will not have you ruining my Christmas this year! The last thing I need is for you to go all Peyton on me and drag me down this holiday season."

"Sorry," Haley mumbled, letting out a sigh. "It's just, it's just this is the first Christmas I'm spending without my parents and Nathan, well Nathan's not making it any easier. I'm surprised he actually agreed to come."

"That's because he couldn't resist my irresistible charm," Brooke giggled, dodging the pillow that nearly collided with her head. "Okay, I get the thing about your parents. I know how you feel, but come on! At least you're not spending Christmas alone moping around 'cause your birth mommy showed up and won't leave you alone."

"I guess," Haley sighed, thinking it could be worse and she could be in Peyton's position right now. Both girls had tried to stay clear of the blonde for the last few weeks, neither of them not wanting to listen to her complaining. "Can you forgive me for being a Tutor Grinch?" Brooke smiled widely and nodded her head before looking at her dry nails.

"Do you really think my nails are ugly?" She asked, making a face when she began to admire them. Sure they were a little much, but she was getting into the holiday spirit! Haley nodded her head a little bit before sending Brooke an apologetic look.

"Would you rather me lie and tell you that I love them?" Brooke nodded her head at Haley's question and Haley couldn't help but laugh. "Well, then, they're absolutely wonderful!" She said in a mock cheery voice. "I mean, wow, Brooke, I've never seen nails so beautiful-"

"Okay that's enough," Brooke stopped her before she could ramble on and on about how her nails looked. Haley nodded her head, knowing that she went too far in her rambling. It was something that drove Brooke crazy about Haley. The girl just went on and on and on until she was told to shut up. "That should be your news year resolution! Stop rambling!"

"Well, sorry!" Haley half apologized, half yelled. "I ramble when I'm nervous and incase you can't tell, I'm nervous about tomorrow!" Brooke let out a dramatic sigh and plopped down on the couch next to her. She blew her nails one last time to make sure they were dry before placing a comforting arm around Haley's shoulders. "What am I going to do?"

"It just takes time," Brooke told her softly, squeezing her shoulder lightly. "Once Nathan realizes how much you mean to him, he'll take his head out of his ass and come crawling back to you." Haley let out a small whimper before dropping backwards, falling onto Brooke's lap. "Oh, come on, Hales. Are you sure that's the only thing that's on your mind? You might as well tell me while you've got me trapped…"

"I guess," Haley sighed, repositioning herself so she was now looking up at Brooke.

"Start from the beginning, dear," Brooke giggled, absently drumming her fingers on Haley's bare stomach. Haley let out a small groan and pushed Brooke's hands away, pulling her shirt down to prevent it in the future. After a few moments of silence, Haley sat up and shook her head at Brooke. "What? Come on, I was just getting into the whole therapist mood! Hales, come on, talk to Dr. Davis!"

"How can I talk to you when you're not even being serious?" Haley told her sharply, crossing her arms and sending a death glare towards her roommate. Brooke's eyes immediately widened and she let out a surprised gasp. "I can't talk to you, Dr. Davis! I need like…Dr. Phil!"

"Oh my god, are you going to go on that roommate problem episode?" Brooke asked seriously, reaching over to touch Haley's arm. "I knew that 800 number looked familiar!"

Haley's mouth fell open, not just in disbelief, but in pure shock as Brooke continued to go on and on about them not agreeing on the tiniest thing. Without saying a word, Haley got off the couch and threw her hands up in the air as she listened to rambling coming from the brunette girl on the couch. Brooke immediately stopped when she noticed Haley's absence. Maybe this Christmas was going to be just like all the rest.

**xxxx**

"Need some help?" Haley asked quietly, slowly walking into the living room hours after their little 'fight.' Brooke refused to say a word to her when they were in the same room, not even bothering to make eye contact with her.

"It depends," Brooke whispered, applying another ornament to the tree. "Are you going to turn into Tutor Grinch again?" Haley laughed slightly and shook her head, walking over to the tree and picking up the box of ornaments on the table.

"I locked her in the bedroom," Haley told her with a small laugh, her face falling when Brooke didn't return the laugh. "Brooke," she said, lightly bumping the brunette with her hip. "Come on, are you that mad at me?" When Brooke nodded her head, Haley sighed and decided to let her guard down. "Fine. I, I don't like Christmas that much."

"I knew you were the Grinch!" Brooke gasped, staring at Haley wide-eyed. When Haley's fell serious, so did Brooke's when she realized she had gone too far. "Sorry," she apologized, placing the ornaments down and leading Haley over to the couch. "Hales, come you don't like Christmas that much? It's such a wonderful time of the year. I mean, what's not to love about the snow, the decorations, the presents…"

"Yeah, they're great if you have money," Haley started, looking straight into Brooke's eyes. "Brooke, my family barely got by day to day. Christmas, Christmas with 7 kids was just, it just wasn't really possible."

"So, so you didn't get any presents?" Brooke asked quietly, grabbing onto Haley's hand for support. She felt horrible now for all those years where she was showered with Christmas presents. She barely used half of them and ended up throwing most of them away. She had no idea that Haley's family struggled to keep themselves a float.

"We did," Haley whispered, her tone matching Brooke's. "It just wasn't large, extravagant gifts that everyone else got. The church down the street from our house would support a toy drive for the less fortunate. I guess it was mainly for me because I, I was so young and my parents wanted to give me some sort of Christmas. My brothers and sisters would all just sit there and watch me open presents. Then I got older and then it was like Christmas didn't even exist anymore."

"Oh, Haley, why didn't you tell me?" Brooke asked, running her thumb over Haley's hand. "If I would have known, I would have never teased you about being a grinch."

"It's not your fault," Haley told her with a forced smile, trying to keep her eyes dry through it all. "I never told anyone because I didn't want their pity I guess. It's fine though; I'm totally fine now. I just learned to celebrate Christmas without the gifts. It's not that bad actually."

"Well, I got you a gift," Brooke told her with a proud smile, laughing when Haley's eyes lit up. "Hales, you deserve a real Christmas and that's what I'm going to give you." She got to her feet, despite Haley's protest, and rummaged through the box of decorations she had near by the couch. "Here, I figured we should have matching stockings."

Haley couldn't help but laugh through her tears as Brooke held out the bright red stocking for her to take. Brooke placed it in Haley's hands and sat back down next to her, watching her admire the small, yet meaningful item. Seconds later, Brooke felt Haley's wrap around her and she gladly did the same, happy to have had cheered the smaller girl up. They both sat in silence, Brooke watching as Haley examined the stocking, frowning when she got to the bottom of it.

"Hey, there's a hole in my stocking!" Haley pouted, letting out a dramatic sigh as she ran her fingers over the hole. Brooke shrugged her shoulders and looked at her apologetically. "Way to go, Tigger."

"Oh, what do you want from me!" Brooke yelled in defense, snatching the stocking away from Haley's hands. "They were two for five dollars!" She tossed it aside and picked up her own stocking. "Merry Christmas, roomie," she mumbled, flicking it into Haley's direction. "Now, how the hell are we supposed to get the star on top of the tree?"

"Grow some wings and fly up there!" Haley told her in the fakest voice she could do. Brooke rolled her eyes and whacked her in the arm before grabbing the star off the table. "I don't know, grab a chair and place it on there."

"Why are you so short?" Brooke complained, rolling her eyes for some sort of dramatic effect. "See, this was the one thing Peyton was good for. Her scrawny ass could always reach if she just stood on a chair and boom, we would be all set. But, no! You have to be some short, cute, little Tutor Roomie and I'm going to have to do this myself."

"Good luck," Haley laughed, getting up to her feet and patting the brunette's shoulders. "Please don't fall, I would much rather spend Christmas here then at the hospital."

"Wait, wait a second!" Brooke called out after her as Haley began to head for the bedroom. "Get your ass back here, missy," she instructed, pointing to the spot next to her. Haley reluctantly moved back to the spot, letting out a small whine when Brooke gripped her shoulders tightly. "You weigh, like, what? 85 pounds? Well whatever, see, we could get a chair and pile some crap on top of it and then I could lift you up onto it and you can put the star on top of the tree!"

"Let me go back to my earlier statement. I don't want to spend Christmas in the hospital!" Haley half-yelled, shaking her head while Brooke nodded her head. "Brooke, there is no way in hell that I am risking my life to put some stupid star on a huge tree we shouldn't have gotten in the first place."

15 minutes later, Brooke placed the last box on the chair and turned back to Haley with a sweet smile on her face. Haley let out an annoyed groan and reluctantly stepped on the couch, grabbing Brooke's hand as she stood on the arm to get closer to the chair.

"I swear to god, if you kill me I am coming back and haunting you for the rest of your life!" Haley told her sharply, trying to steady her balance on the couch. Brooke rolled her eyes and stood on her tiptoes, trying her best to even out the height level between the two. "I really do hate you," Haley mumbled, taking a step onto the chair, her legs wobbling as she stood up straight.

"You're such a trooper, Hales," Brooke giggled, wiping the smirk off her face when Haley glared down at her. She watched Haley nearly fall backwards and immediately grabbed the small of her back, trying to hold her in place. When she felt Haley was in steady enough, she removed her hand and reached the star up for her to take. "Now, make sure it's right in the middle!" Haley took a deep breath and shook Brooke's hand off, leaning forward a bit as Brooke held her legs just incase anything happened. "Good!" Brooke cheered when the star was in place. "Now, get down."

"Hold on," Haley hissed, letting out a small sigh when she took one last look at the star. When she decided that the star was straight enough, she leaned forward to grab Brooke's hand, only to realize that the brunette was standing on the opposite side of her, checking out the tree. "Brooke!" She yelled, plummeting forward and landing on the floor.

"Oh my god!" Brooke squeaked as she listened to the large moan escape Haley's mouth. "Haley, I am so, so, so sorry," she said, biting her lip to try and stop herself from laughing. "Up you go," she mumbled, grabbing Haley's underarms and lifting her to her feet, slowly sitting her down on the couch. "Are you okay?"

"No!" Haley yelled, running her left hand up and down her right wrist. She gazed down at the bruised body part and nearly gasped at the sight of it. "I think I broke my wrist!"

"Yeah, okay," Brooke laughed, lifting up Haley's wrist and examining it carefully. It definitely looked swollen and it was without a doubt black and blue. Haley whimpered loudly at the touch and pulled it back, cradling it with her good hand. "Stop being a baby, it looks fine to me!"

"It's numb!" Haley countered, trying her best to ignore the shooting pain running up and down her arm. Brooke looked at Haley and realized she was telling the truth when she saw a few tears fall down her cheeks. "Brooke, it really does hurt."

"Okay, okay," Brooke whispered, brushing the stray pieces of hair out of Haley's face. She grabbed her car keys from the side table and couldn't help but smirk when she dangled them in front of the injured girl's face. "Do you want to drive or should I?" She giggled, holding it in when Haley glared at her and cursed under her breath.

**xxxx**

"At least it's festive," Brooke pointed out, shutting the door behind her and hoping Haley was still going to be talking to her. Haley collapsed on the couch and rolled her eyes at the hideous red and green cast she was now sporting. "Oh, come on, Hales! I didn't think he was seriously going to do it."

"Brooke, it's ugly!" Haley whined, holding up the cast for Brooke to see. She studied it carefully and wrinkled her nose, agreeing with her that it was indeed ugly. "I'm going to be stuck with this for the next 6 weeks! The only thing good about it is that I get out of stupid cheerleading for the time being." Brooke bit her lip and headed out the door, slamming it shut behind her.

"I heard that," Brooke sassed, collapsing on the couch next to the injured girl. They had spent the last five and a half hours in the hospital waiting room and neither of them were in the mood to argue. "So, Lucas and Nathan are going to be here in less than three hours. Should we sleep now or just suck it up?"

"Well I have to sleep with my wrist up in the air!" Haley informed her with an eye roll, making a face at the cast that was sticking out like a sore thumb. Brooke tried not to laugh at the bruise on Haley's forehead. "Brooke, stop looking at that! It's bad enough I've got the ugliest cast in the world, I don't need you laughing at the black and bruise on my forehead! My husband and your boyfriend are going to be here in 3 hours and I'm a walking mess! I swear this has to be the worst Christmas since Taylor told me there was no such thing as Santa Claus!"

"Hales, honey, you're rambling again…"

"Well maybe I need to ramble!" Haley cut her off, planning on finishing her little tirade. "Brooke Penelope Davis, you are going to sit there and listen to me ramble!" Brooke's eyes widened and for the sake of her safety, she sat back and motioned for Haley to continue. "For the past three weeks you've been Mary freaking Sunshine and for past three weeks I've bit my tongue and put up with it! The decorations and Christmas lights everywhere I look in this place is fine, but, but this huge ASS, 100 foot tree that you made me put up myself has gotten on my nerves! My knees are practically gone because I've been sweeping up pine needles left and right and all you do is sit on your, sit on your throne and watch me suffer! Now, Brooke Davis, I am going to sit on my throne and watch YOU suffer. First things first, march your little behind into the kitchen and make some breakfast. After you're done with that, try and salvage some food so we can feed our guests that you ever so kindly invited!"

"Jeez, Tutor Girl, pop a midol!" Brooke said in disbelief, shaking her head to rid herself of the thoughts forming in her head. Haley let out a frustrated groan and rested her head on the cushions. "First of all, the tree is like 6 feet, not 100! Second of all, remove the stick that's obviously stuck up your ass and third of all, I don't' know how to cook!"

"Well," Haley snipped, crossing her good arm against her chest. "You better learn because the handicapped girl you call a roommate isn't going to help you! Time's a wasting, Martha so get cracking on the food! Oh, and I like chocolate chip pancakes," she said with a sweet smile as if nothing had happened. "And French toast, too."

Instead of fighting back, Brooke let out a huge sigh, realizing she wasn't going to win with her roommate. She wondered where she learned to get her way and that was something she was going to ask her about later. Brooke made her way into the kitchen and frowned, wondering how she was going to pull any of this off. She peeked into the living room and saw Haley's eyes begin to close. Smiling in satisfaction, Brooke slowly crept into the bedroom and collapsed on her bed, her eyes shutting the moment her head hit one of the many pillows beneath her.

Over an hour later, she was awoken when she felt a weight on her bed. Knowing it was Haley, she kept her eyes shut, hoping the girl would go away and let her sleep. A loud groan escaped her lips when she felt Haley's body crawl on top of hers, forcing her eyes open.

"What the hell do you want?"

"Where's my breakfast?" Haley asked casually, resting all of her weight on Brooke's back. Brooke buried her face in her pillow and winced as Haley began hitting her back with the plaster on her wrist. "Brooklyn!"

"That's not my name!" Brooke said triumphantly, wishing she could see the defeated look on Haley's face. "Get your scrawny ass off of me! God, I don't know whose ass is bonier, yours or Peyton's."

"Well, I don't know whose chest is smaller, yours or Peyton's!" Haley shot back, smiling when she heard Brooke gasp in shock. She felt Brooke's foot connect with her back and she sat down on the bed, allowing Brooke to sit up. "I've got three older sisters Brooke, I know every come back to every bitchy comment about looks and such."

"I can never win with you, can I?" Brooke asked in disbelief, letting out a sigh when Haley shook her head with a wide smile. "Let me guess, you were that annoying little sister that everyone hated, right? The ones that were always annoying on TV and that everyone wanted to kill? Oh ho, you so were! That's why you get everything you want, you, you put on that sweet little innocent smile and bam! You get your way."

"Hey what can I say? I'm irresistible," Haley beamed, giggling when Brooke rolled her eyes. "Come on, Brookie, the guys are going to be here soon and if we don't get up, they're going to be eating left over Chinese food."

"What's wrong with that?" Brooke whined as Haley pulled her out of the bed, using all her might with one arm. Haley rolled her eyes and just hoped they could get salvage something before their whole Christmas was ruined.

**xxxx**

"It's about time!" Brooke breathed out as she heard the doorbell ring. She should have known that they would be late. You tell them to come at 12, they come at 2. Haley raised an eyebrow and watched Brooke carefully place the mistletoe above the door, putting on a smile as she opened it to reveal to very cold Scott brothers. "Mistletoe," she whispered, pulling Lucas under the door and shoving her tongue down his throat. Nathan stepped in after him, hoping she wouldn't do the same. "No, you go back out there and ring the door bell."

Before Nathan could say anything, he was shoved back into the cold, nearly tripping over the doorframe as Brooke slammed the door shut in his face. Seconds later, he rang the doorbell, 4 times to be exact just to piss Brooke off. Lucas laughed and sat his gifts on the table, shooing Brooke away when she began to peek.

"Haley, can you get the door for me?" Brooke asked sweetly, allowing Lucas to fold her in his arms. When she saw Haley's mouth open she glared at her and motioned for her to get the door. "Get the door!"

"Okay!" Haley yelled back, skipping over to the door and gripping the door handle tightly. "Hmm, I wonder who's at the door?" She mused, opening the door and pretending to be shocked when she saw Nathan standing there. "Look, it's Nathan!"

"I'm cold!" He whined, lifting Haley out of his way and setting her down next to his brother and his girlfriend. Brooke let out an annoyed groan, her plan not going as smoothly as she hoped it would be. Haley shut the door with a force, mumbling to herself about how fun this night was going to be.

"So, Hales, that's a very festive cast. What the hell did you do?" Lucas asked, taking a bite into the cheese and cracker he made himself. Nathan shook his head, trying to hold in his laugh when he saw it. "And the bruise, I'm loving that bruise too, Haley."

"Well," Haley began, glaring right at Brooke before turning back to Lucas. "Your lovely girlfriend made some sort of makeshift ladder out of a chair and boxes and made ME, as in five foot one Haley, climb up there and put the star on top of the tree."

"It's a little crooked," Nathan pointed out, his eyes widening when both girls glared at him. "Well it is! Jesus, Haley, you were never good for anything," he teased, reaching up and fixing the start without any strain. "Let me guess, you fell and the other one over there was no where to catch you."

"Did you like put a camera in our house?" Brooke asked in all seriousness, blushing at the looks she was receiving. "Well if the girl wasn't so damn short it would have been no problem!"

"Well, why didn't you go up there yourself, Brooke?" Lucas asked, reaching for another cracker. "Come on, Haley is too small for that sort of stuff. I figured you'd be the one up there, after all, you're about 10 inches taller than her."

"Okay, can we stop making fun of my shortness?" Haley pointed out, crossing her arms and pretending to be upset. "I'd rather be short than a giant like Nathan."

"At least giants can put the star on the tree perfectly," Nathan shot back, flashing his famous Scott smirk at her. "Are we going to sit here and eat cheese and crackers all day? I'm frigging starving and this damn apartment is hot as hell."

"Well, I think you beat out Tutor Girl for the title of this year's grinch!" Brooke hissed, making a face at the younger Scott. "You two go mingle or whatever and I guess we'll go get the food. Because that's what women do, right? Wait on their boyfriend slash husband hand and foot. You two are lazy bums!"

Haley nodded her head in agreement and followed the brunette into the kitchen, making a face when she smelled something burning. Both of their brown eyes widened when they saw the smoke coming from the oven. Haley quickly grabbed the oven mitt and quickly removed the burning dish from the oven. She set it down on top of the stove and turned it off, hoping the small fire was going to cease.

"Um," Brooke laughed nervously as Haley stood there, obviously waiting for some sort of explanation. "I forgot to put the timer on?"

"I give up," Haley whined, resting her head against the fridge door. "Brooke, what are we supposed to eat now? The only edible thing we have is now burnt to a crisp! And I don't think Nathan and Luke want to eat burnt…whatever this used to be."

"Leave it to me," Brooke told her confidently, pulling her back into the living room and putting on a sweet smile when the boys looked up at her. "Guys, we have a little problem…"

"Should we even ask?" Lucas wondered, hoping he would not regret the question he just asked. "Well, judging from the smell, and the pissed off look on Haley's face, you guys burnt the food, didn't you?"

"You couldn't smile, could you?" Brooke hissed in Haley's ear, trying to think of something to do. "So, yeah, we have left over Chinese food that Tutor Girl ordered last week or, um, we have cereal. But I think the milks bad so if you want to be brave and try that, then more power to you."

"Who needs to eat anyways," Haley laughed nervously, hoping the guys would agree. "I mean, you two probably ate before you came and yeah…"

"I didn't eat anything," Nathan told her matter-of-factly, biting his lip when he saw the look on Haley's face. "But, hey, according to the test I took in Cosmo I'm overweight for my height group."

"Dude, why were you reading Cosmo?" Lucas asked, raising an eyebrow at his brother. Nathan shrugged and tried to think of answer, but came up short. "No, don't even answer."

"Oh, you be quiet, Broody," Brooke said, a smile creeping upon her lips. "I caught you reading one of my Cosmo's the other day." Lucas' eyes widened and he immediately tried to shut up the people who were laughing.

"For your information, I was reading the article with Eva Longoria. She's not as self-centered as everyone makes her out to be. I mean, so what if she thinks she's pretty, that's no lie and good for her for being a proud Latina!"

"Lucas, stop talking," Brooke told him sweetly, skipping over to him and plopping down on his lap. Nathan shook his head and listened to the awkward silence that filled the room. Haley bit her lip and took a seat on the couch, drumming her fingers on the side of it. "So…what do you guys want to do?"

**xxxx**

"Lucas, do not throw that at me!" Brooke warned, watching her boyfriend gather snow in his hand. "I swear to God, I will kick you where the sun doesn't shine!"

"Oh, come on, Brooke!" Lucas said in disbelief, dropping the snow and walking over to her. He looked at Haley, who was sitting on the steps with a sour look on her face and couldn't help but sigh. "Go over there and cheer Haley up. I hate seeing her so sad."

"Tutor Girl, stop brooding!" Brooke yelled, skipping through the snow and sitting down next to Haley. "Trust me; you're beginning to look a lot like Lucas. It's scaring me so wipe that look off your face and smile."

"It's too cold," Haley whined, snuggling into Brooke's side and letting out a small sigh when Brooke began to rub her hands up and down her back. "I wish I could be childish with you three and throw snowballs at you, mainly, but I can't. This damn cast is starting to piss me off. It won't let me have any fun!"

"Aw, I'm sorry," Brooke giggled, resting her head against Haley's. The two watched in amusement as Nathan and Lucas began building a snowman, occasionally throwing snow at each other. "They look like a bunch of 5 year olds. Come on, let's make snow angels!"

Haley didn't even bother to protest when Brooke lifted her to her feet, leading her to the middle of the yard. She half-heartedly lied down next to Brooke and followed the brunette's command and moved her arms up and down, wincing when she felt the pain sting through her wrist.

"Give me your scarf," Nathan commanded, standing over his wife and forming a dark shadow around her. "Hurry up!"

"But, I'm cold!" Haley told him, pushing herself up with her elbows and nearly falling forward as Nathan unraveled the scarf and carefully placed it on the snowman himself and Lucas made. "Oh, come on! Give me that back."

"Oh, come on, Hales, suck it up," Lucas told her, adjusting the twigs sticking out the side of the snowman. Brooke rolled her eyes and stood up to her feet, brushing the excess snow off of her. She helped Haley to her feet and also brushed the snow off the side of her pants while Haley did the other side. She still felt bad for breaking her wrist and wanted to do anything she could to make up for it.

"Oh my god," Brooke said, rolling her eyes when she realized they had used beer cans for the eyes and buttons. "You two are so stupid. Frosty the snowman has two eyes made of coal, a corn cobbed pipe and a button nose! Not a beer can nose!"

"This isn't frosty," Lucas defended his work of art, "this is…um…Bud Light!" Both girls rolled their eyes and began to walk away, not even bothering to hear the rest of the story.

"He's got a brother named Miller Light," Nathan called out after them, letting out a sigh when they slammed the door, obviously not caring. The two brothers shrugged their shoulders and followed them inside, peeling off their coats and tossing them on the floor where the two girls had placed their clothes. "So, Hales, are you going to let us sign that thing? I mean…you can't have a cast and not have people sign it."

"Whatever," Haley shrugged, her eyes widening when the three made a line. "Just, just don't write any profanity on it! One time, my sister broke her leg and my other sister drew a, a testicle on it as a joke and she wrote, "because you won't be getting any action for a while…" Her cheeks immediately went red and she sat down in the chair, hoping they would never bring that up again.

Lucas went first and bit the marker top, only to receive a slap in the head from Brooke as he began to brood. He was contemplating whether or not to draw the same picture as she mentioned but decided against it. Finally he decided on: _you were always a clumsy one, Hales, get better soon!_

Brooke stepped up and carefully grabbed Haley's cast, a devious smile playing upon her face. She wrote in big letters: _Brooke Davis is my God and I worship the ground she walks on! I will be forever grateful for her and will always cherish the moments I spent living with her. She's the hottest-_

"Stop!" Haley whined, pushing Brooke away and snatching the marker away. She quickly handed it to Nathan and watched as Lucas held Brooke back. "Um, well, I guess you have to write on the bottom of it. Sorry," she whispered, looking up at him with a small smile. He nodded his head and began writing, telling her to look the other way when she began to look down at it.

"Don't look until later, okay?" He warned her, putting the cap back on the marker and tossing it aside. Haley nodded her head and rested the cast back on the arm of the chair, trying to think of something to break the ice. "Uh, well, should we exchange gifts?"

"Only if I get mine first," Brooke noted, glancing around the room to make sure they all understood. "Great!" She clapped her hands and began to fish through the 3 presents that were underneath the tree for her. "Who wants to play Santa Claus and hand out the gifts?"

"Um, why don't you do that, babe," Lucas told her with a laugh, taking a seat next to Nathan on the couch. Brooke happily obliged and began handing out the presents. Haley tried not to look surprised when she only got one gift, while the others had three sitting near them. "Open Nathan's first, that way my gift blows his out of the water."

Brooke did as she was told and began to tear at the horribly wrapped paper. She smiled when she saw the Coach symbol on the box, thinking it was the new wallet she wanted. Her smile immediately faded when she pulled out the pair of fuzzy dice and gift certificate that was thrown messily into the unsealed envelope.

"Five free car washes. Gee, Thanks, Nathan," she said sarcastically, reaching up to give him a tiny hug. Lucas shook his head at his brother and couldn't help but laugh.

"It was the only thing I could afford!" Nathan protested, watching as Brooke tossed the gift aside. It's not like he cared, she probably got him something just as crappy anyways.

"Aw, look it's from, my roommate," Brooke gushed, shaking the present, trying to figure out what was in there. Haley laughed a little and sat back in her chair, waiting to see the look on Brooke's face. She happily unwrapped the gift and let out a small gasp when she saw the first season of Veronica Mars in there. "Oh, how did you know?"

"Well, judging from all those times you forced me to watch the show with you I kind of figured that's what you wanted," Haley laughed, her eyes widening when Brooke threw her arms around her. "Okay, Brooke, I can't breathe…" Brooke quickly apologized and thanked her over and over again,

"Okay, open mine now!" Lucas said as Brooke tried to ignore the giddiness in his voice. He watched her tear open the perfectly wrapped present, much thanks to his mother. She opened the box and glanced down at the scattered rose petals and began to run her fingers through them. When she felt something underneath, she pulled a stack of cards and looked up at him in confusion. "82 rose petals and 82 I love you's. Each in response to every one of those letters you wrote me over the summer."

"Oh, Luke," Brooke whispered, thumbing through each card before placing them back down into the rose petals. "I love you," she told him softly, placing a kiss on his lips and giving him a tight hug. Nathan and Haley made a disgusted face as the two began to make out, launching into a game of tonsil hockey.

"Ahem," Nathan coughed, nudging Lucas with his elbow. Brooke let out a small groan and pulled away, sitting back in her original position. "I'll go next," he volunteered, snatching the gifts out of Brooke's hands and tearing right into them.

He was expecting Brooke to get him something just as crappy, but was surprised when he pulled out a basketball autographed by Michael Jordan. Brooke didn't have the heart to tell him it was fake and immediately sent a glare to Lucas when he was about to say something. Haley kindly pointed out that that was her idea and Brooke threw her hands up in the air. There was no way to win with this girl and this was starting to get on her nerves. Nathan thanked her with an unexpected hug and tore into Lucas' gift next, smiling in satisfaction when it was the complete set of Girls Gone Wild. Haley made a face and turned away, as did Brooke when Nathan began flipping through the inside cover. The boys made a mental note to watch it together later on when they got home.

"It's real, right?" Nathan joked as he pulled out the gold 23 necklace out of the black case. Haley blushed wickedly and slowly nodded her head when Nathan placed it around his neck, along with his wedding ring. "I don't know what to say," he whispered, slowly getting up to his feet and making his way over to her. Haley mustered a smile and was surprised when he wrapped her in a big hug and gave her a kiss. "I love it, thanks."

Brooke volunteered Lucas to go next and Lucas looked at Haley apologetically when Haley's face fell. She shoved the gifts into Lucas' hands and sat up in excitement as began to open them. He thanked Nathan for the co-captains jersey and also the gift certificate for five free car washes. Brooke rolled her eyes and was starting to think he got Haley the same thing. Lucas continued and smiled widely when Haley gave him the new Jimmy Eat World CD. Brooke sat up straight and watched him open her gift, looking at the blank CD in confusion.

"It's all the songs that remind me of you," Brooke smiled sweetly, trying to remember some of the songs she put on. "Okay, Haley helped me a little bit," she said, sending a look towards her roommate. "But most of those songs are my idea! I, I got you something else too but um, I'd rather not you know mention it here. Later, I promise."

Lucas smirked and put the CD back in the bag and had a pretty good idea in mind as to what the gift would be. Haley and Nathan on the other hand groaned and turned away, also knowing what Brooke was talking about. Haley now knew why Brooke was modeling lingerie for her and didn't want to think about that every again.

"My turn?" Haley asked, waiting to get the ok from Brooke. She fiddled with the small box in her hand and half-heartedly opened it, thinking about the Christmases she spent getting hand me down toys from her sisters and the occasional ones from her brothers. She smiled at the digital camera and thanked Lucas with a smile.

"Nathan, why don't you give Haley your gift next," Brooke said, obviously wanting to go last. Nathan shook his head, letting Brooke know that he wanted to go last. "You're so difficult!" She hissed, getting up to her feet in a huff. "Haley, close your eyes."

"Why?"

"Just close them!" Brooke yelled, watching Haley's eyes close and smiling. She skipped towards the front door and returning a few seconds later. Lucas and Nathan's eyes widened and glanced at the triumphant smile on the brunettes face. "Okay, open!"

Haley slowly opened her eyes and let out a gasp when she saw the new keyboard in front of her. It was wrapped in a red bow and Haley couldn't help but think of the night when Nathan bought her a new keyboard and she was going to have the same reaction as she did that night some months ago.

"Brooke," she began, feeling her eyes water. "How, how did you, no, it's too much."

"Don't be silly," Brooke told her, sitting on the arm of the chair and placing her arm around Haley's shoulder. "Every year my grandmother sends me a check and this year she got a little crazy and when you told me you never had a good Christmas, look, I saw it in the store and I just had to get it. You deserve it."

"No, I don't" Haley retorted, brushing away the tears that were streaming down her cheeks. "Brooke, I got you a freaking DVD and you, you caught me a keyboard. It doesn't balance out, no, Brooke, I can't accept this."

"Shut up," Brooke said as kindly as she could, pulling Haley close to her. "Haley, you totally deserve this and ever since Anger Management boy over there broke yours, I figured you could use a new one. Besides, the first song you write on it could be dedicated to the best roommate you ever had."

"Thank you so much," Haley whispered, reaching up a bit to give Brooke the best hug she could without hurting her arm. Brooke patted her back and pulled away after a few seconds and shot Nathan a winning smile. Lucas couldn't help but smile and looked over at Nathan, who also had a smile on his face. "Well, thanks guys."

"What about you Nathan?" Lucas asked in confusion, scratching his head when he realized Nathan hadn't given Haley anything. He felt the anger rise in him when Nathan rolled his eyes and had to hold himself back from sending a punch his way.

Nathan took a deep breath and stood up to his feet, removing his sweatshirt and tossing it aside. Brooke couldn't help but stare at him clad in the wife beater, his muscles in full show. Haley eyes widened and felt her heart skip a beat when he came towards her, kneeling down in front of her and letting her see the white bandage on his right arm.

"Peel that off," he told her softly as Brooke took his seat on the couch and snuggled up to Lucas. Haley bit her lip and slowly tore the bandage off his skin, careful not to cause him any pain. She tossed it in the wrapping paper at her feet and glanced at the tattoo on his upper arm and couldn't help but gasp again.

_10/21/04_

_I dare you to move_

"Our first kiss and the first song we heard together as a couple," he finished, pulling her closer and enveloping her in a tight hug. Haley was speechless again and didn't know what to say. Instead she just inhaled the familiar scent of Nathan's cologne and never wanted this moment to end. This was definitely the best Christmas ever and she was going to remember it for the rest of her life. "I'll always love you, Haley. Just like it says on the cast."

"His gift is better than mine, huh?" Brooke pouted, letting out a sigh when Lucas nodded his head and rubbed her arm affectionately.

**xxxx**

"Okay, this was funny the first three times we watched it," Lucas said, snatching the remote from Brooke and shutting off the Christmas Story. Nathan and Haley thanked him with a small groan and Brooke sent them all glares. "How can anyone watch this for 24 hours straight?"

"Apparently not you three," Brooke hissed, removing herself from Lucas's arms and sitting up straight to see Nathan and Haley curled up on the armchair together. "Okay, well, how about we watch Veronica Mars?" She squealed, leaning forward and grabbing the DVD off the table. She was greeted with three long faces and her mouth fell open in shock. "Come on! Logan and Veronica are so cute and the first two letters in their name spell LoVe nd it's just, it's just too romantic."

"Brooke, put a cork in it," Nathan told her, tapping Haley's thigh lightly, letting her know he wanted to get up. "As much fun as this is, I think I'm going to head out." Haley nodded sadly and followed him to the door and left Brooke and Lucas to do their thing.

"Thank you, for everything," Haley told him with a smile, reaching up to kiss him on the cheek. She wrapped her arms around his waist and let out a sigh when he didn't return the favor. "Well, call me tomorrow and maybe we can hang out?"

"Aren't you coming with me?" He smirked, wiggling his eyebrows and laughing when she began to turn red. Brooke giggled from the couch and Haley turned on her heel and grabbed Brooke and pulled her off the couch, dragging her into the bedroom.

"What did I do know?" Brooke asked in disbelief, watching Haley rummage through her dresser drawers. "Hales, are you going crazy?" She said cautiously, avoiding the occasional shirt that was flung her way. "Haley James-Scott!"

"Do you want me to hit you with this thing?" Haley threatened, holding up her cast for Brooke to see. "Just, just hold on one more second. I have another present for you," she told her, rolling her eyes when Brooke squealed. Seconds later, Haley found what she was looking for and walked over to the brunette. "Hold out your hand."

"Why?"

"Just do it!" Haley yelled in exasperation, getting ready to slug Brooke any second now. Brooke held out her hand and gazed down at the black srunchie in her hand. "Merry Christmas."

"Aw! Tutor Grinch does have a heart," Brooke beamed, wrapping Haley in another hug and smiling widely at her, thinking about the night she was going to have with Lucas.

"Of course I do," Haley giggled, "go get 'em Tigger," she said, slapping Brooke's ass on the way out of the room. Brooke smiled in satisfaction and placed the hairpiece on the doorknob and quickly changed into the lingerie before glancing at herself in the mirror one last time to make sure she was perfect.

"Oh, Lucas!" She called out in a seductive voice, peeking around the corner to see Lucas getting up with a sour look on his face. He stopped in the middle of the room and couldn't help his mouth from falling open. "Merry Christmas, Broody."

"Merry Christmas."


End file.
